Pollock Pines, California

*Time for another USA trip post. I can't believe it's coming up to a year since we went. The pressure is on to finish these trip posts before the year anniversary is here :-P

We left Utah on Monday 8th April to spend our last 3 days in Pollock Pines, California with Susanne and Brent Fox. Susanne Harrison (as she was then) served a mission for our church in Adelaide and was one of the beautiful sister missionaries who taught my mum about the church. Susanne and her companion, Sister Heather Allebes developed a very special friendship with my mum. 
Ever since I can remember my mum would talk about these lovely women and the impact they had on her life. Mum had previously been taught by some Elders but it wasn't until Susanne and Heather connected with mum that everything just fell into place for her and she felt it was the right time to accept the gospel and join the church. She admired and respected these women so much and as mum said, they became like her own sisters. 

Mum had been in touch on and off through the years with these ladies but it wasn't until just before our trip to the US that she reconnected with Susanne. She asked Susanne if we could possibly meet her in San Francisco or Sacramento or even stay with her for a night or 2. I felt a bit awkward initially but Susanne was enthusiastic about the idea and arranged time off work and went out of her way for us. We had originally planned to spend a night in San Francisco with her but Susanne injured her back so we stuck close to home in Pollock Pines. I did not mind at all. She felt terrible that we didn't get to San Francisco but none of us felt like we missed out on anything. In fact, our stay with Susanne was so invigorating and relaxing. It was just what we needed after the whirlwind schedule.

When Susanne met us at the airport we went into Sacramento to this gorgeous old Train museum. Will enjoyed it but I think Simeon & Pete had almost as much fun too. Pete seemed to really enjoy the tour. Will and I bailed on the tour and went upstairs to this great electric train display and spent ages up there watching this model train set and village come to life. After the museum it was really nice driving through the old part of Sacramento. It had a lovely feel to the place. Really clean, lots of nice looking places to eat etc. It's a shame we didn't have more time to just explore more of California. It seems like a fantastic state with lots of diverse environments and communities to explore. 

Susanne and Brent own a huge block of land with Pines sweeping the landscape. As we drove into the little town of Pollock Pines it was just gorgeous. Dense forests and houses nestled in amongst nature. It is such a gorgeous place. It was like we took a collective sigh and just relaxed in this amazing environment.

Her house was like an old school log cabin. Brent had built it and it had so much character. The inside was gorgeous with that lovely smell of wood. Of course it was huge, like most of the homes in the USA. We all had lovely rooms to sleep in and a great porta-cot set up for Will. 

We loved having time to just hang out and familiarise ourselves with the surroundings on that first day. Pete, Will and I went for a walk on the property and discovered some great machinery that Will enjoyed playing on. He loved the tractors and the big old truck that we saw on the property. 

 

Will looks so sleepy in these photos. He was such a trooper!

 

  

He also had a lot of fun playing with an old deflated basketball with Pete for ages and ages.

Unfortunately Brent was away logging so we didn't get to see him until our last night in Pollock Pines. He drove back home for 4 hours basically so he could say hi and then left again the next day. Hopefully next time we can spend more time with him and maybe even meet their 2 daughters, Heather and Tia. 

Tuesday evening Susanne hosted a dinner with a great group of people and we met one of her Aussie friends (Denise) who lives in Pollock Pines with her hubby. She still had a thick Aussie accent - the really occa kind and we loved her to bits. It's amazing how at ease you can feel at a dinner party with someone you only met a day ago, along with a bunch of other complete strangers! Of course Will was winning hearts left right and centre as he does so well.

Susanne made us all feel so comfortable and we really relaxed and enjoyed the time to get to know her. We loved hearing about her impressions of Australia as a young women in the 80's on her mission, especially as she was quite new to our church then herself. It was lovely to hear about her impressions of our mum and what a dynamo she was back then too. Not that we doubted it! I loved looking through her old photo albums. Susanne was and still is a bit of a knockout ;-)

On Wednesday we packed a picnic and Susanne drove us to Lake Tahoe. She had mentioned that she'd like to take us there and I had readily agreed when she described the place prior to our trip. I was not prepared for how epic this place was and the awe inspiring scenery we would encounter. The drive up to the Lake was gorgeous and only took about 1-2 hours tops. 

This shot was taken as the Lake first came into view

Although the mountains were snow topped and we encountered heaps of snow on the way there it was a brilliantly sunny and warm day. We couldn't have wished for better weather, especially in early Spring!

Boy my pregnant belly is looking obvious...actually I just look fat here!

This was the only photo we had altogether. Thank goodness for fellow tourists around to take this photo.

Isn't it just magical!!! Our trusty point and shoot camera still made the place look amazing.

We all loved climbing down a big hill to check out this waterfall

Pete and Sim were more adventurous and actually went off the beaten track.

We drove to a different area right on the lake and had lunch on one of the many jetties. Being out in the brilliant sunshine with the reflection of the lake, it was surprisingly toasty. As we discovered later that evening we all managed to get a bit sunburnt! I felt terrible for Will as I'm usually paranoid about protecting his delicate fair skin. He was ok though, just faintly red on the back of his neck and ears with sun-kissed cheeks.

As we were eating lunch we were all imagining how unreal it would be to spend a summer here on the lake. Fishing, water sports, hiking. Sounds like a perfect family holiday. I said to Pete it would be fun to do with a bunch of friends too. I really enjoyed day-dreaming about this with my belly happy and the sun shining down on us. 

After lunch we began making our way to the other side of the lake (Actually in the state of Nevada) but ended up stopping for a second lunch. Mainly Pete's idea! Our picnic of wraps, sandwiches and fruit weren't really his idea of a yummy lunch. On the way to the Lake we passed a little burger joint that Susanne had heard was really good. Pete was determined to see whether they were the best burgers (that was the claim on the sign). They were yummy, but not the best I've had. Especially when you consider the burgers in Tassie at 'Burger Got Soul', or even 'Grilled'. Everything in the US seems to come with a side of grease which I just didn't handle well at all. The fries were very interesting - we tried pesto fries. Sounded interesting in theory. In reality we tried 1 or 2 and then dumped the remainder...bit of a shame really. We loved our chocolate shakes though. That's something they do well in the USA. 

This part of the lake was had a playground and was covered in sand and then pebbles and rocks towards the waters edge. Not so easy on the feet.

Susanne had forewarned us that even in the middle of summer, Lake Tahoe was icy cold. She wasn't wrong. Yikes. My feet were numb within seconds!

We all still enjoyed dipping our feet in the clear icy water and squealching our toes in the pebbly goodness

We were all so happy being at the Lake. We didn't want to leave and stayed until the last possibly moment. Will was so tired by the end of the day though and he wasn't the only one!!

I can't remember if we did much in the evening when we returned to Susanne's but we were leaving the next day so we had packing and sorting to do. It was nice not having to get up early and rush off the next day. I don't think we left Susanne's until lunchtime. I know Peter, Sim and I crammed in a trip to Walmart sometime either the night before or that morning. I stocked up on make-up and other odds and ends and Pete bought a bunch of DVD's. We joked about buying the hand-gun that was so casually for sale on the shelf! Walmart is an interesting place. Like a really poor man's K-mart but great for grocery and personal items. Our suitcases were bursting at the seams which limited what we bought but we did pretty well overall!

Susanne drove us to Sacramento Airport and it was bittersweet saying goodbye. We had been so tired and a touch homesick when we arrived at her place but left feeling rejuvenated and actually wishing we'd had more time with her in her gorgeous part of the world.

Utah

As most of you who have been reading about our US adventures would know, we are members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. A huge factor in our trip to the US was timing our travel to attend our church's General Conference in April. The leaders of our church hold a special conference every 6 months. There are beautiful and inspiring talks and music. It is held in Church Headquarters in a gorgeous conference centre in Salt Lake City. It has been a lifelong dream to attend one of these sessions live, not just via satellite broadcast at home in Australia. 

Any trip to the USA had to be timed so we could attend and also spend some time catching up with our many friends who live in Utah. 

Pete and I spent 3 months in Provo, Utah at the Missionary Training Centre (MTC) when we were missionaries but unfortunately, apart from one day trip into Salt Lake City, missionaries do not get the opportunity to see any of the surroundings beyond the MTC. You are seriously that focused and flat out learning for 3 months there isn't time for it.  

We were very lucky to again have lovely friends who opened their homes to us. We spent the first few days in Utah in Spanish Fork with my friend Danniey and her hubby Tyler and their adorable children Calvin and Linus. What a fun and lively family they are. Calvin was VERY excited to see us and kept us on our toes and entertained. Danniey and I met on my first day in the MTC. She approached me and asked to share her testimony (statement of personal beliefs about our church) in Japanese. I was very happy to oblige and felt such a strong spirit of truth when she spoke. I will never forget thinking then that this Sister Missionary was a powerful force for good and we instantly connected as friends from that first meeting. I am so grateful for her example and friendship.

The Watt and Wright families

Sister Brenley Charles, (Danniey and I - centre) and Sister Katherine Hurd, at the famous world map in the MTC. August 2004 I think. 

It was pretty chilly in Utah but the snow on the mountains looked beautiful. We really wish we had longer than 6 days in Utah as there was sooo much we could have done. I'd definitely visit when it's warmer and hike in the gorgeous canyons and national parks. It wasn't very practical given we were travelling with a toddler anyhow. 

As a last minute thing, Simeon decided to head to Las Vegas for 2 days while we stayed with the Wright family. I'm glad he had some downtime just for himself and although he came back flat broke and exhausted he said it was very worth it :-) Will really missed him and was very excited when he came back.

We were really happy to meet up with one of Peter's mission companions, Jon Daniels and his wife Tina. They were such sweethearts and made us all feel so at ease in their home. I was really quite surprised when meeting their son Max as they came right out and told us that they had adopted him. I wouldn't have even known. The fair skin and super blonde hair hadn't registered as unusual next to Tina and Jon's dark hair and olive complexions. They were so open about their trials with the adoption process and why they had to go down that road. I am so pleased that Max has joined their family. They are amazing parents and love their little man so much. We all thought he was adorable too - especially Will! He just loves babies...

Here's trouble - Elder Daniels and Elder Watt. It was lovely that Jon and Pete got on like a house on fire. You would never have known they hadn't seen each other in about 8 years! Tina and I could tell that they'd had a lot of fun serving together in Japan. 

Using the trusty timer on our point and shoot. 

We would have loved to spend more time with them but had so much to do and people to see in Utah it was quite crazy. Thanks for the yummy dinner and great company guys! Please come visit us in Australia sometime. x

One of my most anticipated catch ups was with one of my most favourite companions from my mission - sister Bethany Landon (Bethany Coffin now). We had so much fun serving together. You should see the photos from the time we worked together! I remember mum and dad commenting in a letter that we looked like we were having a blast and that we seemed like Sisters. This girl is amazingly talented and I looked up to her so much. Although we haven't been great at keeping in contact the love is still there. I was actually a little nervous about meeting her. We arranged to meet her and her family at Temple Square and go from there to lunch together. Pete was laughing at me when we were walking to the meeting place and commented how nervous I seemed. I kept saying "It's been 8 years, and I'm just really emotional!" 

The moment I saw her my eyes welled up with tears and we embraced in a huge bear hug. Beth isn't a huge crier but I think I set her off a little bit too. I can't tell you how happy I was to see her again. After I had my little teary and lots of hugs we had a photo together. 

This was the only 'nice' and 'normal photo of the 2 of us as companions. I have spent the last 10 mins cracking up looking at all the crazy photos. I could do a blog post just on that! ha ha

This is in Ube, Japan between Nov-Dec 2004. 

I was so grateful that she had driven all the way from Pocatello, Idaho to see me. It's like a 5 hour drive and they had lunch with us and then turned around and drove all the way home. She is one of those true friends that remind me of the saying "The road to a friend's home is never long." We had wanted to visit Idaho but just couldn't squeeze it in this time. There were a few people we tried to catch up with who just couldn't get themselves organised and/or timing didn't gel but Beth just made it happen. Seeing her was really important to me. She is good for the soul that girl! We had an amazing lunch at the cheesecake factory (so so good) and enjoyed reminiscing about our missions and talking about our families. She has 3 kids and they are balls of energy and fun just like their mumma. 

We had lots more hugs before we had to say goodbye.

I nicked this photo from Beth's Facebook page - The Watt and Coffin families. 

Libby cracks me up here. She really didn't want her photo taken. My preggy belly was really showing at this point (16 weeks along) and I remember Beth posted a pic of us that I thought would send the rumor mill going before I made the announcement. I told all our friends in the US but they kept it under wraps until we got home and made it official. 

Later that evening we got to catch up with my Mission President, President Banks for ice-cream. I was so sad not to see his lovely wife Melanie but she was too unwell. She has long battled with her health and I know she was devastated not to see us. All the more reason we have to get back to Utah again someday. I have so much love and respect for this couple. They truly were like surrogate parents to me when I was a Missionary. It was so great for us to talk about what we've been up to since our missions and it was just uplifting to be around this great man again. The time was short but I'm so grateful that we could see each other and to have Peter meet someone I spoke so much about. Will was his cheeky and adorable self and was very happy with the ice-cream :-)

Simeon arrived back in Utah on Friday. By this point we had left my friends in Spanish Fork as we'd arranged to have our last 3 days with the Bollinger family. Tiffany is an awesome friend I also met in the MTC. She served her misson in Hong Kong. She was actually a lifesaver for me. You see, for some reason there was a big mix up with my arrival date at the MTC. I rocked up on a Monday but wasn't due to be there until Tuesday. So they were unprepared for my arrival and I had no companion for a whole day (very strange for a missionary who is always paired with at least 1 other person). I was jet-lagged and nervous and Sister Tiffany Messick (as she was back then) and her companion Sister Ward, took me under their wings and I spent a bit of time with them that first day. I even joined in on their PE time and played Beach Volleyball. It was just what I needed. Just like with Metta, I have kept in better contact with Tiffany than most of my companions. She is a legend and we absolutely loved staying with her family. Her hubby, Bubba is a crack-up and a big talker. We loved him to bits. And their son Charlie is the cutest thing in the world...next to my boys of course. x

I am so blessed to have made so many beautiful friends on my mission. Tiffany is a legend and has such a great sense of humor and is so easy to talk to. On the last night of our stay, Simeon, Pete and I had a great D&M with her and Bubba. We talked about so many things and I wish we'd had more time to just hang out with them like that. I felt bad a lot of the time as we went back and forth to sessions of conference and other catch-ups. I wish we had just stayed put a little more as I just love these guys!

Here we are at the MTC back in July 2004. Jeepers I look fat there!

The gang - Bubba, Tiff and Charlie, Sim, Mel Will and Pete

I love this one of Will and his daddy!

One morning we went with Sim to Temple Square and did a little tour with a couple of Sister Missionaries. We loved being at the Christus statue in the visitors centre and enjoyed walking around the grounds. Spring was bursting with gorgeous flowers and it was a nice atmosphere that day. Sim and I had an emotional moment when talking about eternal families as we'd received bad news about Dad's cancer on our trip and were worried about him. This trip really strengthened my resolve to be a better wife, mother. daughter and sister. Family is the most important thing!

 

 I can't remember what day it was but we ventured way out into the suburbs to visit my friend Matt Mikhail. He and I served together in the Matsue Zone of our mission. My parents and I actually stayed with him and his then fiance when I returned to Japan a year after finishing my mission. So it hadn't been quite as long since seeing him as most of my other friends. He has a growing family of gorgeous boys but they were pretty scarce when we visited :-) 

Will was happy to help himself to some of their toys though.

Silly Matt had recently injured himself and was recovering from surgery. His family were also getting ready for a big move back to Japan. I must admit I was a little jealous as I'd love to move to Japan with my boys. 

Matt's a bit hairier than I remember him but still the same awesome guy! 

On Saturday and Sunday Pete and I got to attend General Conference. We went to the Saturday afternoon session and had pretty good seats. When the prophet enters the room there is this incredible feeling of greatness and warmth. Everyone stands as he enters and then sits down once he is seated. There is a reverence and respect that I've only felt in the MTC and here at conference. It's such an amazing experience. He is indeed a representative for our Saviour and I feel privileged that I could be there in the same room to hear him speak. It was so nice to be there with Pete and have a little spiritual reflection time without a toddler around :-)

After the session, Pete had arranged to catch up briefly with his Mission President, Henry J Eyring (son of President Henry B Eyring of the First Presidency of the church). Simeon had meanwhile been dropped off with Will and after a fair bit of mucking around he had the job of getting our car from the place we'd parked it and would meet us a bit later. We really didn't have things worked out very well so I felt awful that Simeon had to do so much mucking around.
We were waiting awhile and I said to Pete that we should call him to see what was happening. I don't know whether he'd forgotten or not but he said to meet him at his dad's office. We were pretty stoked to think that we'd get to be in President Eyring's office but didn't think the chances of him actually being there were great. Well, as we entered the room it was packed with all of the Eyring family and who should be sitting eating his dinner at his desk but President Eyring. I almost did a double take and remember being a bit awe struck as he stood up to shake our hands and talk with us. In between sessions he was catching up with family who were visiting from Idaho so I felt kinda bad to be encroaching on family time but we were welcomed warmly and even offered dinner and cookies. We ate some cookies happily - especially Will. Another guy from Pete's mission had also come up to the office to catch up. We spent the next 30 mins chatting to President Eyring (snr) about our missions and he was talking to us about the new guidelines and asking for our ideas and thoughts about it all. That was pretty awesome!! As much as it was incredible to be there the time flew by before they all had to go to the next session of conference. It definitely wasn't like the relaxed catch-up we'd enjoyed with my Mission President. However, we are glad that despite these people having really busy schedules, they made a bit of time for us. Pete got to have a photo with these very special people. 

L-R Elder Garrett Hyde, Sister and President Henry B Eyring, President Henry J Eyring and Pete :-)

After leaving Pete behind to go to the Priesthood session of conference Simeon, Will and I walked back to the car. It was pretty awful to be honest as there were lots of protesters out and the atmosphere was hostile. It made Simeon really angry and it put me on edge also. It definitely wasn't the most pleasant car ride that's for sure. We were both glad to get out of the city and hang out with Tiffany, Bubba and Charlie who helped to pick up our spirits in no time. I would like to come back to Utah to see what it's like when there isn't so much on in Temple Square. 

Sunday was different though. There were hardly any protesters out and it was a lot more pleasant. We got there really early and enjoyed strolling along Temple Square and then being able to hear the Spoken Word by the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. We were sitting a lot further back this time but it was still amazing to be there. 

It's quite something to get there and see the place gradually fill up. I think it seats about 11,000 people.

After the conference session it was nice to just stroll around Temple Square and take some photos. We were loving our Sunday date together!

I wish Simeon had experienced Salt Lake City today rather than yesterday. A very different experience that's for sure. The Salt Lake Temple is stunning and I wish we'd had time to actually visit. Definitely next time!

Utah is a funny place. I have pretty mixed emotions about it but really loved seeing all our beautiful friends and being able to attend conference was very special.

We left Monday morning and whilst I was sad to say goodbye to the Bollingers I was getting tired after all of our jet-setting across the country. I think all of us were feeling like we were ready to go home but we had 3 days to spend in California yet...it turned out to be incredible and was the perfect way to end our trip..but more on that in the final installment of my travelogues...